The Spitzer Team

By DANNY HAKIM

Published: January 1, 2007

Eliot Laurence Spitzer begins his term as the state's 54th governor today. He has pledged to reform the way the state does business and to bring a higher ethical standard to Albany. He recently outlined a number of sweeping steps that he would take unilaterally, including restricting campaign contributions and banning gifts of more than nominal value. But after promising to look far and wide for talent, many of his appointees come from the attorney general's office, or from his campaign staff. Some key positions remain unfilled, including the job of health commissioner. Here are the top officials who have been named, many of whom require Senate confirmation. DANNY HAKIM

THE GOVERNOR'S CENTRAL STAFF

Richard Baum
SECRETARY TO THE GOVERNOR
Mr. Spitzer's right-hand man and longtime chief of staff as attorney general will fill the same role in the governor's office. He was the executive director of the transition office as well as Mr. Spitzer's top campaign aide.

Paul Francis
BUDGET DIRECTOR
He was policy director both for the Spitzer campaign and the transition office. Has had careers in business as a venture capitalist and as C.F.O. Will need to find a way to rein in the budget while increasing education spending.

David L. Paterson
LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR
Has been Senate minority leader and will be a liaison to the Legislature. Mr. Paterson has had a good relationship with Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno, a Republican. Mr. Paterson is expected to have a bigger role than his predecessors.

Marty Mack
DEPUTY SECRETARY FOR INTERGOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS
Has been deputy attorney general for the last eight years. A former mayor of Cortland.

Darren Dopp
COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR
Another staff member from the attorney general's office who will fill the same role in the governor's office. He and the governor have pledged to make state government more accessible to the public and the press.

Dennis P. Whalen
DEPUTY SECRETARY FOR HEALTH
Will be the governor's top adviser on health care issues and have a critical role in overhauling the state's Medicaid budget. Currently serves as executive deputy commissioner for State Department of Health, but has had ethical problems in the past, having been fined by State Ethics Commission for accepting gifts from people lobbying the state.

Christine Anderson
PRESS SECRETARY
Was communications director for Mr. Spitzer's campaign, and previously a spokeswoman for the Kerry-Edwards campaign and the investment bank UBS.

Francine James
APPOINTMENTS SECRETARY
Critical gatekeeper for filling state jobs. Filled a similar role as assistant first deputy attorney general, overseeing legal recruitment.

Michael A.L. Balboni
DEPUTY SECRETARY FOR PUBLIC SAFETY
A prominent Republican appointee, will be the top domestic security and law enforcement official. Mr. Balboni, a State Senator, is an expert on homeland security. His appointment reduces the slim Republican Senate majority.

Laura Anglin
FIRST DEPUTY BUDGET DIRECTOR
Previously the deputy comptroller of the Division of Retirement Services, with responsibility for administration of the state and local retirement system.

David Nocenti
COUNSEL
Filling the same role he has filled in the attorney general's office, he will be the governor's chief legal adviser. He previously was in the counsel's office during the Cuomo administration and was counsel to former Queens Borough President Claire Shulman.

Richard Rifkin
SPECIAL COUNSEL
Another top legal adviser to Mr. Spitzer in the attorney general's office, he will be one of the governor's top legal advisers. Has a long history in the attorney general's office, having first joined in 1979, but left in the mid-1990s for a stint as the executive director of the State Ethics Commission.

HEADS OF AGENCIES & SELECT AUTHORITIES

Eric R. Dinallo
INSURANCE SUPERINTENDENT
Was chief of the Investment Protection Bureau in the attorney general's office, overseeing some of Mr. Spitzer's key Wall Street cases. Worked for Morgan Stanley and then was general counsel of Willis Group Holdings Limited, an insurance broker.

Pat Foye
DOWNSTATE CHAIRMAN, STATE URBAN DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION
Former lawyer at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, where both Mr. Spitzer and his wife have practiced, now chief executive of United Way of Long Island. Mr. Spitzer is splitting the Empire State Development Corporation job in two to emphasize his commitment to revitalizing the upstate economy.

Elliot Sander
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR AND C.E.O. OF THE METROPOLITAN TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY
An executive at DMJM Harris, a transportation engineering company, and head of the Rudin Center for Transportation Policy and Management at New York University. The ''C.E.O.'' title is a new one, a challenge to M.T.A. chairman Peter S. Kalikow, a holdover from the Pataki era.

Anthony Ernest Shorris
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE PORT AUTHORITY
Was a senior policy adviser to the Spitzer-Paterson campaign and the transition staff. Previously was first deputy executive director of the Port Authority.

Patricia Smith
COMMISSIONER OF THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Currently assistant attorney general in charge of the Labor Bureau.

Priscilla Almodovar
PRESIDENT AND C.E.O., HOUSING FINANCE AUTHORITY
Was a policy adviser for the campaign and transition team; health care and housing were among her areas of focus. Was a lawyer at White & Case.

Carol Ash
COMMISSIONER, DEPARTMENT OF PARKS, RECREATION AND HISTORIC PRESERVATION
Has been the executive director of the Palisades Interstate Park Commission since 1999.

Gladys Carri?br>COMMISSIONER OF THE OFFICE OF CHILDREN AND FAMILY SERVICES
Has been the senior vice president of United Way of New York City since 2005, previously was the executive director of Inwood House.

Avi Schick
DOWNSTATE PRESIDENT OF THE EMPIRE STATE DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION
Currently deputy attorney general in the New York State attorney general's office. He began his legal career at Kirkpatrick & Lockhart.

Brian Fischer
COMMISSIONER, DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONAL SERVICES
Since 1991, has served as the supervising superintendent of the New York State Department of Correctional Services.

Kumiki Gibson
COMMISSIONER, DIVISION OF HUMAN RIGHTS
Previously an official at the National Urban League and general counsel at Johns Hopkins University.

David A. Hansell
COMMISSIONER OF THE OFFICE OF TEMPORARY AND DISABILITY ASSISTANCE
Serves as chief of staff at the New York City Human Resources Administration.

David J. Swarts
COMMISSIONER, DEPARTMENT OF MOTOR VEHICLES
Has served as clerk of Erie County since 1987.

Lorraine Cortes-Vazquez
SECRETARY OF STATE
A former president of the Hispanic Federation, has been working as a lobbyist for Cablevision.